DaZed
by Diamond Wolf Returns
Summary: Some people say that there’s one night in your life when the gods look down from above and miracles arise… Sadly miracles just never last… S x S
1. A Special Meeting

** DaZeD **

By Diamond Wolf Returns

Summary: Some people say that there's one night in your life when the gods look down from above and miracles arise… Sadly miracles just never last… ((S x S))

Side Note: Just to let you all know, Sakura used to do magic and all the stuff that happened in the manga really did happen to her in the story except the whole Syaoran part. Let me repeat, Syaoran was not part of her magical past!!!

Rating: M for mature, 16+, not for little kids, it's a big kid story!!, the opposite of K, what have you…

Disclaimer: I do not own Card captor Sakura. Period. End of story.

**Chapter 1**: A Special Meeting

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A girl with short brown hair trudged slowly toward the enormous mansion upon the hill. She pulled her pink jacket tighter around her small body and bent herself over against the wind. It was unbelievably cold for an early September afternoon, as it had been for the past week. She shivered and looked at the looming mansion in front of her. It wasn't the mansion, or the people who owned it that scared her. In fact, the house belonged to her best friend, Tomoyo. It was the fact that she would be going to a party, where she would stick to the wall like it was her lifeline, praying that one guy, no matter how ugly, well as long as it wasn't Daichi-san, would ask her to dance.

The brunette sighed and squinted her emerald green eyes. _I'm doing this for Tomoyo. It's her seventeenth birthday party for goodness sakes! And I'm her best friend, it wouldn't be right if I didn't come. _She told herself. _But still, Chiharu has Yamazaki, Tomoyo has Eriol, Naoko has well, she doesn't care for that kind of stuff and Rika already has found true love and that leaves me with no one. _She sighed once more as she made her last few steps to the large gate signaling the start of no return.

"Good evening Kinomoto-san. Enjoy the party." The guard lady said politely to the flustered young woman. She wore sunglasses, even though the sun was just about set, that gave an air of mystery to the lady who couldn't be much older than the brown haired girl herself. The woman opened the gate and allowed the girl to come inside before closing it with a large 'clang'. The younger of the two women couldn't help but notice the finality of it.

"Oh yeah, I already said you can call me Sakura." The brunette said with a smile that could only convey happiness, but her clenched fingers relayed how she truly felt, anxious.

The guard woman returned Sakura's offer with a large smile that brightened her whole entire face. "Only if you call me Cho." She replied. And as quickly as the conversation had come, Cho turned away, leaving Sakura to fend for herself.

_Deep breath, deep breath. It'll be fine if they don't like your outfit or notice it's the same one you wore to the last party. Who cares, I like it! I'm just here to have fun with my friends, not to 'hook up' with any guys although I really, really, really want a boyfriend…_

A high-pitched squeal shook Sakura out of her thoughts. "Sakura! Oh I'm so glad you could make it, even though I know how much you hate these things." The owner of the voice was none other than Tomoyo Daidouji. _Golly she's so beautiful, why can't I be more like her? _Sakura couldn't help but compare herself to her.Tomoyo's dark, rich black hair swirled down nearly to her hips, framing her lightly tanned face perfectly, whereas Sakura had short brownish-blonde hair that didn't surpass her chin. She felt it made her look childish, but Tomoyo wouldn't dare let her grow it out. Tomoyo had mysterious steel gray eyes that drew you in as opposed to Sakura's grass colored eyes. The only thing that Sakura thought she had going for her was her athletically toned body, but again, Tomoyo was beating her in the body department. Tomoyo was well endowed in the chest area and Sakura was somewhat lacking. Unfairness in looks aside; Sakura loved Tomoyo like a sister and would die if anything ever happened to her.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world! You're seventeen now!" Sakura chirped excitedly, easily transitioning into her normal, cheery self. _No sense in ruining Tomoyo's wonderful day by moping around._

Tomoyo gave her friend an award-winning smile as she draped an arm around Sakura's shoulders. "Let's go inside then. It's chilly out here."

The two walked slowly into the mansion's entrance hall, stopping only once so Sakura could pull off her sneakers and set them by the door along with everyone else's shoes. The emerald-eyed girl gulped as she saw how many shoes were stacked neatly against the wall. _That many people are going to be here?_ She stopped again to rid herself of her pink windbreaker.

"Oh Sakura! I just knew you'd wear that same ole' outfit that you wore to my party last year… So-"Tomoyo began, staring at Sakura's choice of clothing disdainfully.

"What? This is the best outfit I have! You know Dad has been working hard to have ends meet ever since Toya's been in college and he's just now recovering since Toya graduated." Sakura shot back, trying hard to stifle the anger that was rising up inside of her. She looked down at the outfit; sure it wasn't the latest and greatest like Tomoyo's racy party dress, but it would have to suffice. "I'm sorry… I just…"

Tomoyo squeezed Sakura's hands knowingly. "It's okay; you have every right to be upset. I could have gone about this another way, but I… Anyway, here, I have a surprise for you." Tomoyo turned away from Sakura and led her up the grand staircase, down the hall, and into Tomoyo's room. Just her room could have engulfed the Kinomoto's quaint little home.

"Okay, close your eyes and sit on my bed." Tomoyo instructed, a mystifying twinkle in her eyes.

Sakura complied, shutting her green eyes in wonderment. _What did Tomoyo cook up this time? _She suppressed a giggle as she remembered how embarrassed she was by the clothes Tomoyo made her when she had captured the cards so many years ago.

"Ah hah! Here it is!" Tomoyo exclaimed. Sakura could sense her coming closer and began to open her eyes. "Did I say you could look?" Tomoyo scolded, while Sakura tightly shut her eyes.

Sakura felt herself being led to another location, a blindfold being placed over her eyes. "Now, Sakura slip this on. No peeking. Then yell out to me when you're finished."

Sakura shrugged her shoulders and slowly began to take her tank top and fading blue skirt off. Then, she slowly slipped the outfit Tomoyo had given her on. She relished the feeling of the silk against her cold skin as she slipped what she thought was a dress over her bare thighs. When she finished to the best of her ability, she called out Tomoyo's name. Tomoyo immediately came.

"Oh wow! It looks better than I thought it would!" Tomoyo exclaimed, spinning blindfolded Sakura around. Next, she set Sakura into a chair and ripped off the blindfold. "Don't fidget Sakura. I need to get this over with so I can go back to my party." The raven-haired girl murmured, pulling a brush through Sakura's short hair. Several bobby pins were placed between her lips and a bottle of hairspray was squeezed between her arm and torso.

"Tomoyo? Why are you doing this for _me_ on _your_ birthday?" Sakura asked, staring at the light purple silky fabric of the dress. She lightly touched it, fearing that if she pressed too hard it would disintegrate into millions of pieces and be left to collect in the far corners of Tomoyo's room.

"Sakura, I've wanted to do this forever. I made this dress quite a while ago actually. Mom and I want to help you and your father out, but your father won't let us. So, I decided to do this." Tomoyo explained, gingerly placing some lavender eye shadow on Sakura's delicate eyelids.

"Mhm… but it's your birthday. You're supposed to be downstairs having fun right now." Sakura countered, confusion layering her words. Her eyes fluttered, pushing back the tears that were threatening to reverse all the work Tomoyo had done on her eyeliner.

Tomoyo, noticing the disaster that was about to ensue, pulled a tissue from the cardboard box and dabbed at the corner of Sakura's emerald eyes. "If I didn't want to do this I wouldn't be up here. Plus-"She paused to dab a bit of blush on Sakura's pale nose. "- if you're happy, I'm happy. Now stand up. I'm done."

Sakura pushed her self out of the chair and caught a glimpse of something unfamiliar in the mirror. It was her… but it wasn't her. She tiptoed closer, as if she didn't believe it was her reflection. She tentatively placed a palm against the cool glass of the mirror and took a better look. Her usually scraggly hair was held in place by two amethyst bobby pins save for two golden-brown strands that twisted across her rosy cheeks. Her emerald eyes sparkled, enhanced as they were by the purple eye shadow and eyeliner. It was the dress though that really caught her attention. She was amazed by the way it hugged her body, accentuating the curves of her hips and her carefully toned stomach. "Tomoyo, this is… wow. Thank you!" Was all Sakura could manage to get out, never had she seen something so beautiful.

"Forget about it. Oh my goodness! I almost forgot!" Tomoyo gasped, running to her dresser to pull a teardrop shaped pendant and a golden chain. "This is also for you." Tomoyo walked over to Sakura and placed to necklace around Sakura's neck. "Now, let's go."

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_Wow, I actually feel like a princess. _Sakura thought to herself, following Tomoyo out into the ballroom. _But, I feel bad. Tomoyo went to all this trouble for me, and on her birthday! Why did I comply? I should've stopped her, at least at the dress. _

"Tomoyo! You look amazing!" Chiharu cried, admiring the sleek look of the maroon dress. She gathered the younger girl into her outstretched arms. "Oh and happy birthday!"

Tomoyo giggled as Chiharu mumbled a few more things into Tomoyo's ear along the lines of, 'I bet Eriol is blushing madly after seeing you in that outfit.'. After one last laugh, Chiharu pulled away to go greet Sakura. Except the Sakura she was expecting to find wasn't the Sakura who was there.

"S-sakura? Is that you? Whoa…!" Chiharu cried incredulously. She scratched her scalp in confusion until Yamazaki came up behind her and placed a hand in the small of her back.

"I think it's still me…" Sakura answered, a small, shy smile steadily making itself known on her lips.

"You look beautiful and I think I've never seen you show so much skin." Chiharu added, walking forward to hug her friend.

"Oh, uh, yeah." Sakura replied, being cut off by Tomoyo on the loudspeaker.

"Attention everyone…. Before the dancing begins I would like to thank you all for coming. It really means a lot to me. Also, I'd like reintroduce you all to my best friend Sakura Kinomoto. Can you come up Sakura?" Tomoyo was speaking the words, but Sakura couldn't quite comprehend why she'd be saying them. "Sakura….!"

Sakura shook her thoughts out and walked over to Tomoyo, a confused look painted on her pretty face. She groaned inwardly. _Dang it… Tomoyo knows that I hate public speaking, or just coming in front of a lot of people, but I guess I can do this, I mean she did give me a makeover and everything… _She let out a large sigh and stepped into the fixed spotlight next to Tomoyo. _Whoa! She even has a spotlight in here. Geez!_

"Everyone, you may not know her. This is, as I said before, Sakura Kinomoto, my best friend." Tomoyo gushed, holding a hand out for Sakura to grab on to, which Sakura, upon seeing it, immediately did.

Naoko, another one of Sakura's friends, squinted at the two girls in front of her. "Sakura…? That doesn't even…" She took off her glasses and rubbed them lightly on her shirt before putting them back in their rightful place. "Uh… I guess it is…"

"That's Sakura? She looks so different. Almost…hot." A guy with shockingly bright red hair murmured, stroking his chin in thought. With his other hand he thumped the blue-black haired teen beside him. "What do you think?"

The other teen shrugged his rather small shoulders and looked instead at the girl beside Sakura. "I guess, but I'm all for Tomoyo."

"Yeah, she does look hot in that dress. Doesn't leave much for the imagination now does it?"

The blue-black haired young man's dark eyes flared for just a moment, just long enough to tell the other teen to back off. "Oh, sorry man." The flaming haired teen muttered, backing quickly away.

"Eriol-kun!" Tomoyo's silky voice called playfully as she made her sweet way to the blue-black haired guy. She ran a hand through her hair tiredly, but still kept the earth-splitting smile on her face. She was glad though when Eriol wrapped his skinny arms around her body and pulled her close before planting a firm kiss on her cheek.

"You look beautiful tonight my dear." He muttered into her ear, in return she giggled gleefully. "-but I do wish that you wouldn't reveal so much of yourself to the other males at this party. I'm having a hard time keeping them away from you." He looked down at Tomoyo's choice of clothing with mild disdain. Indeed, Tomoyo's dress was rather revealing; the v-neck swooped down just above her belly button where a clasp held the conjoining fabric together. As if that wasn't enough, a triangle cut was made just below the clasp showing her belly button and both sides of the dress were open showing, in Eriol's opinion, miles of skin.

"Oh Eriol, you're always wanting me to dress conservatively." The raven-haired teen playfully pushed her boyfriend away.

"Just when we're out and about…" A sly grin crossed his face, and he was just about to pull Tomoyo into a passionate kiss when Sakura walked up, tripping slightly over her cumbersome heels.

"Uh-huh… I'm sorry… but…" Sakura began, raising a hand hesitantly to tap Tomoyo on the shoulder.

"What?" Tomoyo snapped, twirling around quickly to face Sakura. "Sakura, I made you pretty now go have fun and mingle. I'm not here to hold your hand and introduce you to everyone you don't know! I did my good deed for the day, don't make me push it." _I'm sorry Sakura…it's all part of the…_

Sakura reeled with shock; never had her charming, cute, lovable friend said anything of this caliber. The words shot into her heart and lay there, going against all the things that she thought she used to know about her best friend. "I don't need you if you just think of me as your charity case." Sakura was surprised at the angry words that were releasing themselves from her gut. Her cheeks turned a pink tint, but she continued speaking," Here, take your shoes back and your necklace and bracelet. I don't need them, but I'll have to get you the dress later because I don't feel like stripping in front of everyone." She threw the said items at the bottom of the other girl's black strappy shoe clad feet and stalked off toward the back porch.

Tomoyo turned back to Eriol and winked. "I feel bad, but this is all going according to plan."

Eriol just nodded, his dark eyes staring out after Sakura.

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_How could I actually think this night could be any better than any other party I went to? I should have just stayed in the corner because tonight is even worse than all the other parties combined. Augh! Why'd Tomoyo have to say that… even though she's kinda right… but she didn't have to get all snippy. _Sakura thought, walking barefoot through the back garden, not exactly knowing where she was going or even caring for that matter. She let her hair, which was falling anyway, out of its holds allowing it to fall in place around her face. She was so busy with her thoughts that she didn't notice the rather large rock placed right at the end of the stone pathway she was currently walking on.

"Augh!" Sakura cried, hopping on one foot and cradling the other in her hand. She had stubbed her baby toe on the rock and it was now bleeding quite nicely. _This is what I get for not paying attention… oh… that smarts. _She cringed inwardly and moved to go sit down on the wrought-iron bench beside a hibiscus bush.

She bent over to examine the damage when someone walked up. "Do you need some help?" The figure asked in a low masculine voice.

Sakura looked up at the figure with her emerald eyes and nearly fell over right then and there. Standing in front of her was her crush for the past five years. He was the Untouchable Mr. Li. She stared longingly at his messy chestnut locks falling boyishly over his chocolate brown eyes. He had a perfect complexion and perfect facial features, not to mention his sensual lips. "Uh….." Sakura couldn't bring herself to move or say anything, never had he said more than 'Hello' or 'May I borrow a pencil?' to her. So, she sat there looking and feeling like a complete idiot.

"I guess I'll take that as a yes?" He laughed, a sound so majestic that Sakura could feel her body temperature rise.

_Say something you idiot! Say something! Don't just sit there gawking at him! _Sakura reprimanded herself before slowly snapping out of her trance brought on by the handsome young man. "Aah, yes, yes please."

He bent down next to Sakura's bloody toe and whipped a handkerchief out from his pocket. "I don't normally carry around a handkerchief; you just got lucky because I had one on me." The teenager murmured, lightly dabbing away the scarlet blood gathering at the top of the stubbed toe. "I think you might need a band-aid, hold on, I'll go get you one." Syaoran smiled and stood up before walking quickly into the house, giving Sakura just enough time to get her wits about her and process what had just happened.

_Did… he just…? Syaoran… talked to me? It's not… Oh great… now I'm woozy… _Sakura placed her cold palm against her burning forehead, trying to figure out if the previous scene had been a mere dream. "Hoeee…"

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite get that… what was it Sakura-chan?" Syaoran asked returning with a sopping wet paper towel in one hand and a band-aid in the other. He smirked as he noticed the blush rising on the girl's flustered face. It was almost…well, cute. Bending down, he placed the wet paper towel atop Sakura's bruised and battered little toe and gently wiped the scarlet colored blood that was slowly seeping from the cut.

"Aah… th-thanks? And did you just call me Sakura-chan?" Sakura asked, the blush on her face not subsiding in the least.

"You're welcome, and if you'd rather me call you something else that's fine too. That's just what I hear Daidouji-san calling you." Syaoran murmured, as easy and smooth as everything he ever said. He then placed the band-aid on her toe, carefully wrapping the 'wings' on either side. "There, all set. Now, just don't go busting up any more toes. I don't want to be on first aid duty all night." And with a quick wink he turned to leave, crumpling the trash in another paper towel while he walked.

Sakura nearly swooned, her face was on fire and her emerald eyes sparkled furiously. _That just happened to me didn't it… oh my goodness… I can die happy now… _She stood up ignoring the light pain from her toe and walked off in the direction Syaoran had gone inside. _I want to see him again._

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Golly, what's with me and writing new stories? I start them all the time, but have such a hard time finishing them! I'm so bad… I really am. Can any of you guys forgive me? Hehe Well, this was interesting wasn't it? Raises eyebrow Look for more Syaoran & Sakura romance in the next chapter. That's when it really gets fun! Oh yeah, for all those Tomoyo lovers out there, don't worry… she's not going to be mean or evil or anything like that… her little spat was all planned. Heh heh heh (This will be addressed in the later chapters!)

So… I hope you liked it! Please Please Please Please **review** and read chapter two! It would make me very, very happy!

Oh yeah, a little note about the party shoes in the house… Tomoyo made a special exception to allow Sakura (And herself too) to wear heels in the house just cause they went so nicely with the outfit. Otherwise shoes aren't allowed on the inside floor. It's bad manners!!!


	2. Could This Be Real?

**DaZeD**

By Diamond Wolf Returns

Summary: Some people say that there's one night in your life when the gods look down from above and miracles arise… Sadly miracles just never last… **((S x S))**

Rating: Currently Teen, but it WILL go up to Mature!

Disclaimer: Must I constantly remind myself that I do not own the wonderful series of CCS? And that it all belongs to the wonderful ladies of CLAMP who also own Magic Knight Rayearth and Chobits…? mutters darkly under breath

**Chapter 2**: Could this be Real?

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The lights shone all around in the room lighting up, for the briefest second, the teenagers that danced wildly there. It seemed as if they didn't have a care in the world: homework, tests, and exams could wait; they were having a party, a quite wild one at that, in Sakura's opinion.

_Dang it, where is he_? Sakura wondered, her green eyes swiveling around the room in search of her love interest; the charming, brown haired, brown eyed, downright handsome, Syaoran Li. He was the exceedingly popular senior of Tomoeda High School whom every female had had a crush on at least once during their stay at the school.

_Sakura, why are you looking for him you idiot? This isn't like you_! Sakura scolded herself, turning away from her search. But then she saw him, dancing between Jatsu and Aya, both the typical popular girl, so fake-nice that it makes you want to puke, so mean to those underneath them that it makes you cringe, so beautiful that it makes you wonder how they could have an evil bone in their body or how much make-up it took to achieve such supreme beauty. Immediately her heartbeat rose past the normal level and sweat began gathering at her forehead with just one glance of his brown locks.

_Mmmmm… _She felt her heart catch in her throat. There he was, his brown eyes twinkling each time the light passed over his striking face. He had rhythm that was sure, well, at least more than Eriol who pretty much just stood there looking embarrassed while Tomoyo did all the work, i.e. she danced practically_ on_ him.

Then Syaoran noticed her and a large smirk formed on his face, but, much to Sakura's obvious dislike he turned his attention back to Jatsu and murmured something into her ear, to her obvious like. Sakura sighed and turned away before hobbling over to the snack bar. Once the excitement of seeing Syaoran again had worn off, the pain in her toe came back. _What was I expecting? It's not as if he's gonna come over and ask me to dance or anything! At least he smiled at me right?_

Just then, a hand clamped onto her shoulder, causing Sakura to jump ten feet into the air, despite her injury. "Eyahh!" She cried whipping around to face whomever it was that had placed a hand on her shoulder. She silently hoped it was Syaoran.

No such luck however, she turned to face her stalker of nearly seven years, the disgusting, the vile, the downright creepy; Daichi Watashio. A large smile was placed on his chapped lips as he looked Sakura up and down almost ravenously. Sakura reeled back from the shock of seeing him so close after all these years. After the incident, she had managed to basically keep him at arms distance one way or another. Sakura could feel a wave of nausea wash over her as she remembered when he had tried to kiss her at Tomoyo's birthday party three years ago.

"I didn't know that someone as beautiful as you could ever get any more beautiful, my little cherry blossom." He whispered, his dark olive greenish-brown eyes, which reminded Sakura readily of what her cat had left for her in the catbox that morning, burning with vomit-inducing desire.

"Umm…. T-thanks? Daichi-san?" Sakura whispered back quickly, silently willing him to go away.

"It is no problem to compliment you. I'd do it more often if I could, really I would." Daichi brought a bony finger up Sakura's bare arm. Sakura shuddered in reply, but he didn't seem to notice. Instead, he continued talking as he grabbed Sakura's hand, each nasty finger wrapping itself around her own. "Would you like to dance?"

"No thank you Daichi-san, I'm fine, really…" She managed to choke out.

"You would? That's great!" Daichi exclaimed, obviously not hearing Sakura's reply or choosing to ignore it. He smiled behind his hideously large glasses with his lips as well as his eyes, and wiped back his oily, black bangs from his face before pulling Sakura behind him onto the dance floor.

_Thank goodness that it's a fast song… maybe I can call Chiharu and Yamazaki over here to take the pressure off me… _Sakura thought, all reflections of Syaoran left in the sheer terror of her stalker's presence.

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh………." Sakura led out a long, low groan of dissatisfaction as she watched Daichi begin to dance or rather, begin to convulse to some techno music that the D.J. had put on. She grimaced again then turned to scan the crowd for one of her friends or anyone, really, who could save her from her nuisance.

_Chiharu! Where are you??????_ Sakura's emerald eyes suddenly locked onto the brown haired girl with signature pigtails. _There you are! _"Chiharu! Chiharu! Hey! Why don't you come dance with me? And bring Yamazaki too!" Sakura didn't care how dumb she sounded; she just wanted a distraction from Daichi who now was trying some interpretive style dancing. Sakura shook her head as she chanced a glance at the poor dancer. _Geez, and I thought Eriol was bad…_

"I've been practicing Sakura, can't youtell?" Daichi asked, doing what he thought was the robot, he looked, sadly, more like a constipated chicken.

"Mmhm Daichi, I can," Sakura murmured looking away from him to watch Chiharu, Yamazaki, and Naoko walk over. _Thank goodness…but I feel bad for Daichi…_

"Hello Sakura!" Chiharu's cheerful voice broke the tension around Sakura and she actually felt her self smiling in relief even as she felt a wave of guilt wash over her, crashing into the nausea she had felt before.

"Shall we dance?" Sakura murmured quickly to prevent any uncomfortable silence that may have occurred. Chiharu nodded as Yamazaki walked over, soon followed by Naoko.

Chiharu didn't answer, but proceeded to shake her hips in vulgar sort of matter that Sakura was sure Mrs. Mihara wouldn't approve of. Yamazaki also began dancing, if you could call it that, that is.

Sakura fell right in step with the beat and actually found herself losing her senses in the music, it was as if all the problems she currently faced went out the window, replaced by the rhythm of the song; she was transfixed in a world of music. But, a sudden brush against her back brought her back to the real world, if only for a second. Then it happened again, and again and Sakura could've sworn she felt hot breath against the nape of her neck.Unable to fight off her curiosity, she turned around and found two familiar chocolate eyes staring intently back at her own emerald ones.

"Hey Sakura," The brown eyed boy murmured huskily in a low drawl. To which Sakura barely managed a weak "Hh?!"

"I saw you needed a bit of a break from ole Daichi-san over there." The intruder whispered. He stopped dancing to stare intently into Sakura's eyes "You do need a little saving right?"

Sakura was too shocked to speak so she settled for a slight nod of the head. Twice in one night her crush had talked to her, and now he wanted to dance with her. _There is some kind of God in heaven…_

Without waiting for a vocal answer Syaoran grabbed Sakura's trembling hands firmly, but gently in his and brought them over his head to rest against the back of his neck. Letting them go, he brought his hands to rest on Sakura's hips. "You good?"

Sakura just nodded again, relishing this foreign feeling; she had never felt a guys hands on her waist before and she was surprised to admit that she didn't hate it. As the two began swaying side to side she finally realized that the song had switched from fast-beat techno to a slower song and that her friends and Daichi were no longer by her side.

Butterflies began fluttering in Sakura's stomach, battering restlessly at her sides. She was unaccustomed to the feelings that those butterflies and the close proximity of a handsome male dredged up. And just as Syaoran was leaning closer she felt her legs go even more jellied. It was a miracle that they were even keeping her up. And she was nearly positive he could hear her heart thumping a mile a minute, in fact, she was quite certain the whole room could hear and that's why half the people had stopped in mid-dance and were now staring at the two figures dancing intimately in the middle of the room.

"Li-san, why…" Sakura began turning her face upward to look into Syaoran's eyes. Oh those gorgeous chocolate brown eyes; they looked glassy in bright neon strobelights and the brunette couldn't help but take in a sharp breath at the intensity of them, "… why did you? I mean… why me? Why me when there are so many other girls, much prettier, much richer, more popular and more in your league. Why'd you choose to dance with me rather than them?" Sakura immediately looked down, sure she had been thinking those exact thoughts ever since he asked her to dance although she had never meant to voice them, but something about the way he looked at her made her switch from her previous mode of shyness to pouring out her feelings.

Syaoran chuckled lightly and looked away, an unrecognizable glint in his eyes. But as quickly as the movement had come, he turned back and smiled at Sakura. His eyes grazed her face for a minute, searching for the correct and sufficient answer that would turn her to putty in his hands as he did with all the other girls. "Well… before I explain anything I want you to promise me you'll call me Syaoran and drop all this 'Li-san nonsense."

His dancing partner blushed furiously at his sudden forwardness and then nodded.

_Bingo. She's even easier than Jatsu…_ Syaoran thought smirking to himself, but a small rush of an unfamiliar feeling hit him and he found himself almost finding her blush-reaction… cute…

He smirked again, "Well, to answer your question, there's something…. different… about you... but in a good way." He paused and looked into Sakura's eyes. "Is it a crime to be tired of all the regular 'it' girls?" His hands tightened around her waist pulling her closer. "Is it wrong to be attracted to someone so beautiful?" _Okay, maybe I over-did that line a little, but… _He glanced at Sakura and was pleased to see that she was literally melting in his arms. Her slender cheekbones were on fire and her green eyes sparkled with fervor.

"Uh, um, no. No. That's f-fine." She managed to choke out, breaking the awkward silence left by Syaoran's statement. She chanced a timid smile and looked back into Syaoran's brown eyes that were now burning into her own.

"Shall we go talk?" He asked after it seemed Sakura wasn't going to say anymore. She nodded her head, again speechless, and followed him away from the dance floor. Her hands felt so small in his large ones as he took her to the corner of the room where several couches were sitting empty. It was as if they were waiting for her and Syaoran to come sit down.

Sakura sat down next to Syaoran on one of the large overstuffed couches and immediately Syaoran snaked one of his arms around her shoulder. "You don't mind my arm do you?" He asked, once more looking at her face. He started pulling it off, but Sakura stopped him with a loud cry.

"-No! I mean, it's alright, you can leave it." She looked away, embarrassed by her sudden outburst, but relaxed a little when Syaoran chuckled again and wrapped his arm back around her, pulling her small frame to his muscular body.

_I wish I could say something that wasn't so stupid. I must look like a fool to him, especially compared to his old girlfriends..._ Sakura thought, noticing Syaoran's even heartbeat against her shoulder. It was unfair, she felt, that his should be nice and even when her's was so rapid. _Then again, he's probably used to this. He can get any girl he wants here and probably has slept with most of the girls here. Just last week I saw him making out with Hitomi outside the locker room… Maybe he just wants to add me to his list..._ She began to scoot away from him and was just plotting her next move to get away when Syaoran's amatory voice stopped her.

"I've been watching you for a while, but I never knew how to come up and talk to you. But thanks to Tomoyo, please don't be mad at her, I now know how you feel and I wanna tell you how pleased I am that you like me." Syaoran said pretending not to notice that Sakura had been slowly inching away and now stopped. _She's smarter than most of the other girls though… Damn. I almost feel bad…_

Sakura looked back at him. He said the words with such heartfelt kindness, with such conviction, how could she not believe him? _Maybe this is different, maybe he doesn't just want to get into my pants—or into my dress actually… I can at least give him a chance right?_

"Y-you are?" She tried, wanting to believe his words were true, but having a hard time actually doing so. Her heartbeat increased again and her palms felt hot against the cool fabric of the couch.

"Yes." Said Syaoran as he smiled and pulled her close again. He could smell the cherry blossom scented shampoo in her hair and smirked, but he closed his eyes and smelled her auburn hair again. The scent was so alluring, so attractive; he began imagining her in his strong arms, their bare skin touching, the same scent filling his nostrils. _No Syaoran, you can't get attached…_ His eyes snapped open and he was suddenly aware of Sakura speaking timidly to him.

"Can we go somewhere else? I don't like the looks everyone is giving us…" She whispered so that only he could hear. She wanted to appear as indifferent as him, but was slowed by her constant fear of being judged by others. Perhaps if she could forget her paranoia she wouldn't be as timid in her responses she and could enjoy herself and with Syaoran as her only audience she could unwind.

He seemed different than all the other guys, though she already knew this. He was more handsome than any of the other boys except for maybe Eriol, and he had a simplistic happiness about him all the time. He was like a sun in a cloudy sky that was bursting with the urge to push all the clouds away and truly shine. He was someone who wouldn't take no for an answer. But along with all his good attributes he had many bad ones; he liked women too much, but went through them like toilet paper and treated them as such too. It was as if he was trying to find the perfect girl for him, but just couldn't find her and didn't care who he hurt in his search. And Sakura was naïve enough to believe that that girl could be her…

"Sure," He whispered back, unraveling his arm from around her to take her hand in his again. This time he noticed how tiny her hand was in his, and was immediately reminded of a little child. A child that was dependent, fragile, innocent. He nearly dropped her hand right then and there and walked out of the house never to look back, but he remembered what Tomoyo said, he wasn't going to let her down. He would let Sakura have her night…

They walked hand-in-hand out of the room, up the grand staircase that glimmered in the bright light from the expensive crystal chandelier, and into the entertainment room that Sakura knew so well. It was the same room she and Tomoyo stayed up well past their bed times talking and watching Sakura's escapades on the gargantuan t.v. that was housed there. The numerous nights, as the two had grown up, when Sakura sat cradling Tomoyo in her arms while Tomoyo cried her eyes out over her newest failure in love. These memories brought pain to Sakura's heart as she remembered the fight they had had that night. Her sweet Tomoyo had never yelled at her before.

But she pushed these thoughts, and several more like them, out of her head as Syaoran pulled her onto the couch again next to him. He let go of her again to take off his jacket and unbutton the top button of his dress shirt which had undoubtedly cost him an arm and a leg to buy. It was well-known to everyone in the school –-as well as everyone in the whole country of Japan—that Syaoran's family was extremely rich. His father owned five large corporations, three of which were based in Hong Kong, with one in America and one in Japan. His mother, Yelan, was a high-class lawyer who only worked for the best of the best meaning she only worked when she was paid handsomely for it. One of his sisters was a popular actress and another was a fashion designer working in Paris. The Li family lived in a gargantuan mansion on the outskirts of Tomoeda that was even larger and grander than Tomoyo's.

"This better?" Syaoran asked after he was settled again on the couch, and he had his arm wrapped once more around Sakura.

_Well, it's better because now nobody's looking at me, but now we're alone, together. Me and Syaoran Li. Alone. _She shrugged, trying her hand at indifference, and smiled. "Yes."

"I like it better too, it's quieter." And indeed, it was quieter, the walls of the room ensured that no sound from outside the room got in… and that no sound got out… The only sound in the room was that of Syaoran's voice and a slight thumping noise made by Sakura's nervous foot against the base of the couch.

"Yes. It is." Sakura agreed, taking and deep breath and slowly letting it out to calm her overactive heart. Now that there was nothing else to distract it, the pain in her toe returned throbbing with each beat of her pulse. She stopped tapping her foot and brought a hand down on top of it in order to sooth the pain that reverberated there. _Darn it. I finally get a chance to talk one-on-one with Syaoran and all I can think about is my dang toe! _

_Think Syaoran, there's gotta be something more you can say… what can I say that'll make her calmer? _Syaoran racked his brain for something to say, and after a minute of awkward silence he murmured. "You know, I used to be really shy and timid. Every time I got around a beautiful girl I would blush as red as a frickin' tomato and could barely form any words."

Sakura stared blankly at him for a moment wondering if this statement could be true. How could Syaoran who with one look at a girl could get her to strip in less than ten seconds have been shy? "Really? I find that hard to believe. You, _shy_ and _nervous_?" She let out a little laugh that sounded like music to Syaoran's ears.

Syaoran brought his other arm around to Sakura's shoulder and turned so that he was facing her. Then he brought his face close so that he could smell her hair again. Sakura's hands then began to work independently and before she could stop them they were wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer to her body so that she could smell his cologne. His cologne reminded her of the fresh smell of rain mixed with the woodiness of the old cigar box that she had tucked her in closet holding her special treasures. One treasure was a yearbook picture and signature from Syaoran from freshman year. She blushed.

He laughed his deep, hearty laugh again and brushed his lips against Sakura's. The sudden movement caused Sakura to turn away; she'd never been kissed before, ever. And he had done it so quickly without bothering to ask her if it was alright. But now that the initial shock had worn off she was actually pleased to confess that she had enjoyed it.

"Wow." She said softly, unconsciously licking her lips. She took a glimpse at his, even though the kiss had been quick; it had been long enough for her to notice how soft they had felt against hers.

"I'm sorry, that was a bit forward. I-" Syaoran began to say, trying his best to appear embarrassed although not much caused him embarrassment. However, Sakura stopped him with a small kiss on the cheek that honestly did cause him to blush.

"-I, okay…" Syaoran found himself still unable to reply even after a few minutes had elapsed. It was weird that a girl should affect him so much, especially since she wasn't all that special. Sure, she had a plain prettiness about her and big green eyes that sparkled like ornaments on a Christmas tree, but there wasn't anything exotically striking about her. He blinked a few times then got his nerve about him and gave her his signature smirk once more.

"I-I've never done anything like that before." Sakura admitted as she dissolved into a blush. She twisted her fingers in the thin fabric of her dress sending little ripples of wrinkles cascading from where she touched. She sighed and looked up at Syaoran, her emerald eyes looking at his so trustingly, so innocently.

_Dammit. She has to make it difficult for me doesn't she? God, she's beautiful. Why couldn't she be just another ugly whore? _His thoughts enveloped his mind.He replied with another sigh then leaned forward to take her lips with his again. _I don't wanna break her heart, but she and I… it's not… not… damn she's a good kisser… not possible…not possible…never…no… it's possible…_

His hand lifted and his fingers entwined in her hair sending the familiar flowery scent floating through the air around her. He inhaled it as if it were his sweet drug and deepened the kiss requesting entry at the gate of her lips with a gentle swipe of his tongue.

Sakura responded subconsciously as if her body was made to follow these moves, but inside she was scared, and unsure. What if she wasn't kissing right? What if this was going too fast? A kiss against her jaw let all thoughts she currently had fly out the window. He was good… really good—not that she knew any better, being that she'd never been kissed by any other person.

Her hands rose to play with the hair at the nape of Syaoran's neck causing a low murmur of contentment from him as her fingers tapped against the top of his spine. She pulled her legs up onto the couch towards her torso not caring if this movement wrinkled her dress.

His hand ran up her bare thigh pushing the fabric of her dress away and alighting chills down her spine, causing a moan of thrill to rise in her throat.

Then as sudden as it had begun it stopped and Syaoran pulled back, retreating into himself. He didn't say anything, but instead stood up and put his jacket on, a pained expression on his striking face. His mouth opened once, twice, but no words came out. It was as if he wanted to explain why he'd stood, but couldn't.

_Was it something I did? _Sakura thought to herself, pulling her dress down tenderly over her knees. She was already feeling the cold begin to seep in around her as Syaoran's warmth left. She pressed tentative fingers to her lips; she could still feel the touch of his against them. "If I-" Sakura began, her eyes welling with emotion, but not tearshow could she be sad when something as incredible as this had happened?

Syaoran cut her off,"I'm sorry." And with that he strode out of the room without once looking back.

_This is what I wanted: attention from Syaoran. So why do I feel so wrong?_

…………………………………………………………………

So what'd you think about that!? I promise, everything will be explained soon. Didya like it? I had so much fun writing it! So PLEASE! **GO REVIEW!** It'd make my day! Oh and the rating will go back to Mature very soon, I promise. Oh yeah and no updates until I get some reviewage! Kay? I'm a greedy little writer.


	3. All Good Things Must Come to an End

**DaZeD**

By Diamond Wolf Returns

**Chapter ****3**: All Good Things Must Come To an End

Sakura sat completely still on the dark velvet couch for a minute, but her heart started pounding wildly at the thought of having done something to offend him. She had to apologize. There was no other reason for his quick departure than her own fault, she garnered in her mind. Taking a deep breath, she swung her legs off the couch and tested her footing, then set off after him, the thin material of her dress doing little to warm her suddenly chilled body. _I finally have a chance, no a miracle, and I blew it! I blew it!_

"Sya-Syaoran! Please, allow me to apologize!" She cried in anguish as she saw his form turning at the bottom of the stairs. He turned to look at her, his jaw grinding against his top teeth, and then walked away.

She was sure at that moment, by that cold look, that she had indeed done something to upset him. _Sakura think, what could you have done?! _She held her head lightly in her hands and let the moments of the past hour wash over her. No matter how desperately she tried she couldn't place an exact thing that she did wrong. _Maybe I kiss badly? Or my breath stinks?_ She inwardly cringed, then lifted a palm against her open mouth to check her breath.

Sighing, she lifted up the bottom of her dress and proceeded down the stairs, to what? She didn't know. All she knew was she had to get out of that room where she had just spent her moment of ecstasy with Syaoran. Her mind was still reeling from the shock of it all; his touch, his kisses, how her lower regions roared with delight at each contact of his skin on hers. She blushed.

She rounded a corner and nearly bumped into an obviously drunk party guest, but dodged at the last second rather gracefully considering her normal aptitude for clumsiness. She continued in her blind venture until two hushed voices in the dark entranceway stopped her.

"I'm done." Stated the male voice; it was undoubtedly Syaoran speaking in the low tones.

"Wha? Why?" The other voice, which Sakura quickly deciphered was Tomoyo's, replied in loud cries of disbelief.

He grunted and as Sakura moved forward she could see his hand snake into his pocket from where she stood next to the bookshelf. "Take it back, it's off." He shoved a handful of something into Tomoyo's hand, but Sakura couldn't tell what it was from her position in the dim light. Then he turned, before the raven-haired girl could protest, and left the room with a loud bang of the oak door.

Tomoyo shook her head and stared after him, but made no move to follow. Instead she gathered herself and walked from the room, not noticing Sakura's huddled form bracing against the bookshelf.

Sakura quickly crept forward, having no desire to stay at the party any longer, and bent down to grab her tennis shoes from the pile of sneakers, sandals, and heels that the party guests had temporarily discarded. She found one pink shoe rather quickly, but the other took some time to find. Sakura's heart was in her throat at each second that ticked by during her search. She didn't know why exactly, she just knew that she needed to be alone for a bit so her mind could adjust to what had happened and at least three blocks from the Daidouji residence.

After what felt like ages, shoes firmly on feet and her jacket wrapped around her waist, Sakura left Tomoyo's mansion and walked as fast as she could to the rose bushes next to the fence in the front yard. She knew that place well. Tomoyo used it many times in the past to escape the tight grip of her parents and their locked down house. In their younger years it'd been Sakura's house she'd escaped to, but ever since Tomoyo had hit puberty and began to notice boys, the getaway bushes had been used less and less to visit Sakura.

She squeezed between the two bushes, snagging her hair and dress simultaneously on the branches and thorns. Her heart caught; she was ruining her beautiful and no doubt expensive dress. _What would Tomoyo think?_ Then she remembered what had happened earlier and with renewed apathy she pushed through harder to the hole cut in the fence that the bushes concealed beautifully.

Being free from the confines of Tomoyo's property Sakura felt ten times lighter as if she'd been gathering a heavy weight from each incident that occurred at the party that night. It was so strange how a place that had had such a permanent sense of comfort for her all her life could now fill her with such trepidation. She shook it off and pulled her phone from one of the pockets of her wind-jacket and cycled through her contacts till she found her brother's number. _Touya will come get me, but then he'll ask why I'm leaving so early and why my dress is so ripped. Nosy bastard. Dagummit. _She sighed for what felt like the hundredth time in the past hour and shoved her cell back in its place and continued down the street in her pink-shoed feet, ripped dress, and her jacket wrapped carelessly around her hips. She knew she had to look quite the sight.

After what seemed like ages she finally came upon the run-down house that stood as the Kinomoto residence since before Sakura could remember. It looked like a piece of rubble compared to Tomoyo's mansion, but Sakura had no sense of shame as she admitted this fact. This house was more calming than Tomoyo's could ever be, and the wear and tear was what made it feel comfortable. Plus, it housed so many memories of her mother that she couldn't bear to say a bad word about it. She walked up to the gate and slid the latch open with her free hand. She was just pushing her way in when her brother beckoned to her from the street.

"Sakura, what are you doing back already?" Touya asked, his dark hair pushed into his eyes by his jacket hood. He had a large smirk on his lips that immediately told Sakura that she needed to get to her room quickly or he was going to make serious fun of her. She turned away from him, refusing to answer his question. Instead she latched the gate behind her before Touya could get in, and ran to the front door, keys in hand. She couldn't help the tears that covered her face and she didn't want anyone to see them, especially her big brother. He didn't need any more ammo to use against her in their next sibling squabble.

"Hey wait up! You okay?" His voice followed her into the house through the door left ajar by her retreating form. He hopped the fence, not bothering with the gate, and bounded into the house in three easy strides. He then closed and locked the door knowing that his father would not be back until very late. He had an exam to write up for his graduate students and that generally took hours of Fujitaka's time holed up in the library; a fact that often left the two younger Kinomotos to fend for themselves throughout the years.

Sakura's tear-stained face appeared at the top of the staircase as she looked angrily down at her brother. "Just leave me alone, Touya! I'm not in the mood to mess with your antics right now!" She shot at him, her anger and hurt at Syaoran's actions clearly evident in her outward emotions. Her hair, earlier brushed and clipped, was now in all sorts of directions, and her dress was in shambles leaving her looking very distraught as she grabbed the railing for support.

"Sak-" Touya began, but was quickly cut off by the sound of Sakura's slamming door. She hadn't waited another second to listen for his reply. He sighed and climbed the stairs scratching his head as he tried to piece together what could've happened especially because her dress, which had to be more expensive than everything else in her closet combined, was so ripped.

"Shit, females are so damn complicated," he muttered under his breath as he came to stop in front of his little sister's door. He tested the knob, it wasn't locked, so he pushed his way in and found her hiding under her covers, shaking with loud sobs. Immediately he came over to her and wrapped her smaller form in his arms. He pulled her to his chest and wiped the strands of hair that had caught in her tears off her face. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"It doesn't matter, I should've expected it," she murmured against the coarse fabric of his jacket. It was wet with her tears and crumpled where she'd laid her head. He tightened his arms around her and kissed her temple in a tender sort of way trying to tell in some nonverbal form that he wasn't going to make fun of anything she had to say.

She paused her sobs for a moment, and took a few ragged breaths. "Syaoran is out of my league anyway."

Touya stopped, the gears in his mind turned ever so slowly. Why did that name sound so familiar? Then it hit him; Syaoran, as in Li, Syaoran, the school playboy of Tomoeda High school and his workmate at his second job at Tomoeda Automotive. He ground his teeth slowly in anger and pulled back as little snippets of cuss words left his lips. "Sakura, he is a no good, worthless shithead asshole who thinks he is mankind's gift to women. Stay. Away. From _him_." His dark eyes tightened on the last word, anger showing through.

Sakura looked away, a blush rising on her cheeks as she remembered the way Syaoran had touched her and kissed her. She touched her lips, if she tried hard enough she could still feel his against hers. It'd felt so right, so perfect until she'd screwed it up. This brought on another round of sobs until Touya's voice broke through the din. "Shit, he didn't do anything to you did he? Your dress is ripped…"

She was quick to shake her head, wanting to defend Syaoran from her brother despite his strange retreat at the party. After all, she felt whatever had caused him to react that way had been her fault. It had to be her fault, there was no other possible explanation. "I just ripped it b-because I fell." _There, he'll believe that. I'm so clumsy all the time._

"You sure?" Touya tousled the hair at the bottom of her neck and looked deeply into her eyes searching for the truth. "Because if he did I swear I will kill him."

Her green eyes grew wide knowing in some twisted way he was telling the truth, but quickly she dropped them to her hands and sighed. "No, he didn't. It's okay. Thank you."

"You are my sister, Sakura, and I will always be here for you. I know I make fun of you a lot, but it's only because I love you. You know that right, squirt?" He touched his fingers to her chin lightly and forced her face up so that dark eyes met emerald ones once more. "Oh and be more careful when you walk, okay? I don't want you destroying all your outfits."

She nodded, forcing a smile, which he quickly returned before pulling his hand away and reaching for his cellphone. "Dammit, Kyouka's been waiting at the door for the past ten minutes. Hope she didn't leave. She's such a good fu-" He stopped himself, seeming to remember who it was he was with and laughed awkwardly before bounding out of the room. She could hear him stopping at the top of the stairs though and soon he was back in her doorway. "Uh… I don't know how to put this, but stay in your room, okay? Kyouka doesn't know you're going to be here and you weren't going to be here so… and I think that if she knows you're here then she won't want to… you know… well…just stay in your room okay?" And with that he left again, slamming the door behind him.

Sakura sat up more in bed and started nibbling nervously on her fingernails. _What a horrible night. My best friend yelled at me, I had an amazing chance with Syaoran and I blew it, I ruined this dress, and now I'm on lockdown in my own house just because my brother is a horny bastard. And to top it all off my toe is throbbing again! Dagummit…_

The sound of a woman's giggles filled the hallway breaking Sakura's internal monologue. "Oh Touya-kun, you left me waiting outside in the cold for so long. I was starting to think you'd forgotten about me! I might have to _punish_ you for doing that!" Her voice was light and airy, but with a hint of seductive nature that gave Sakura a nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach. No doubt they had their hands all over each other already.

She knew what they were about to do. And did her brother seriously think that she would sit here quietly all night while _that_ was going on? Probably not, he most likely expected her to sneak off to a friend's house, but she couldn't. They were all at the party, Tomoyo's party. The thought of her brought another round of self pity and a few more tears, but all her feeling of sorrow were soon replaced with complete revulsion.

"Oh Touya! Give it to me! Harder! Harder!!!" Kyouka screamed each time Touya's headboard hit the wall. Sakura choked back bile, not wanting to think of her brother doing the act, but then her thoughts moved to Syaoran and a tingling sensation started to fill her. She shook her head, throwing out any thoughts and dropped her face to her hands. "God, they waste no time at all. Why can't he move out and get his own place already?"

As she listened to the sounds coming from the room down the hall, Sakura suddenly wondered where Touya's mature side had come from and how he had known exactly what she needed to hear. She knew that her brother was now back to his normal selfish, pig-headed ways and in the morning it would be back to "Little Monster" and "Fat Ass" rather than "Sakura" that he would be calling her and somehow this was a comforting fact to Sakura. At least some things could be relied on.

A loud moan from Touya's room rang out again into the silence and Sakura knew she could take no more. She stripped off the remains of the dress and placed them in her school bag to return to Tomoyo on Monday. She then threw on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt and grabbed her pink jacket and wallet before storming out of her room to a symphony of squeals and moans. She really was going to kill him in the morning.

_No decency. Seriously. And because of him I have to evacuate the house, but where to?! Can't go to Tomoyo's, or Naoko's, or Chiharu's and Dad is off limits at work. I'll go see Rika, she'll understand. _With her mind made up, and the knowledge that she'd soon be leaving the site of another Touya Kinomoto porno she began feeling a little better about things. Thinking of all the horrible things she would do to her big brother in the morning didn't hurt either, as well starting with how he was a hypocrite for hating Syaoran for being a womanizer when Kyouka was his second girl this week to come over for a little "visit".

Once she was safely outside and the sounds of wild passion were drowned out by street noise, she pulled out her pink phone and was surprised to see four messages waiting for her, not to mention numerous missed phone calls and voicemails:

**WHERE R U? IM SORRY ABT WHAT HAPPND. CALL ME! **

**REC. 8:12 PM FROM D, TOMOYO**

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**SAKURA, PLZ! ANSWR MY CALLS! IM WRRIED.**

**REC. 8:55 PM FROM D, TOMOYO**

**---  
**

**SAKURA!!!!**

** REC. 9:02 PM FROM D, TOMOYO**

**---  
**

**SAKURA-CHAN, PLEASE CALL ONE OF US, TOMOYO IS OUT OF HER MIND WITH WORRY. THANK YOU!**

** REC. 9:05 PM Y, Naoko**

Just as she clicked out of the last message her phone buzzed; Tomoyo calling again for what must've been the fiftieth time. Sakura knew she should answer her phone, but the deep down, childish side of her had no desire to talk to anyone, least of all Tomoyo. She reveled in the fact that she was causing her best friend some sort of anguish after her outburst earlier in the night. Yet she knew that she couldn't keep the cold shoulder up for long; acting like this wasn't her, she forgave her friends generally on the spot, but she hurt too much to at the current moment in her life to think about accepting any apologies. She clicked the reject button and dialed Rika's number, then waited for her to answer while standing out front of her house shivering in the cold.

Rika answered on the second ring, "Sakura! Everyone's been so worried about you. Are you okay? Tomoyo's so worried. She even canceled the rest of her party. You really need to call her."

_Aah Rika, ever the motherly one with her voice of reason. _Sakura thought fighting the increasing urge to roll her eyes. "Look Rika, I called you because I have nowhere to go. Touya has the house on sexual lockdown and frankly I have about zero desire to talk with Tomoyo right now." She muttered into the phone, pulling her jacket up higher around her neck as a breeze brushed against her frigid body. She toed at a pebble that was lodged between the cracks of the sidewalk as she waited for Rika's reply.

"I can understand that, but there's more to tonight's story than you know…" She paused, sighing, then cleared her throat. She hesitated as if she didn't know what to say, and with each second that ticked by an uneasy feeling started to rise in Sakura's stomach. "I am not the one to tell you about it, though. Call Tomoyo. She will explain everything, okay? After you talk to her, call me and I will come get you, but only after you talk to her and get the full story."

Sakura knew with that the conversation was over with. There was no changing Rika's mind when it was made up. _For being the sweetest one of my friend's she can really be the most stubborn._ A harsh kick sent the pebble flying from the crack and down the street followed by a shriek as Sakura realized she'd used the wrong foot to kick with. Her toe screamed in agony furthering Sakura's foul mood. "Dammit stinking toe! Fine, I'll call her, but don't blame me if I don't have anything nice to say."

Another pause. "I don't blame you. I wouldn't have anything nice to say to her either, especially after… um, I'll talk to you soon." She sighed one final time and then the dial tone signaled she was gone. Once more Sakura was on her own, left to call the one person she had no desire to speak with, while suffering from a throbbing toe and an increasingly dropping outside temperature.

She pulled her zipper on her jacket to the top and squared her shoulders before heading down the street, phone in hand, towards the corner store. "If I have to deal with this crap I might as well get a king-size Butterfinger to soften the blow of this evening's events. Chocolate solves everything. Then I will call her." She slipped her phone in her pocket, ignoring the constant buzzing every few seconds, and trudged forward.

She was so busy focusing on the idea of the Butterfinger that soon awaited her as the solution to all her problems that she didn't notice the car that had pulled up next to her. _Aww the almighty, sugary sweet chocolate-ty goodness. The creamy deliciousness! _Nor did she notice the driver rolling down his window and calling to her until the man in the passenger seat had gotten out of the car and was grabbing her by her arm.

"Miss, iz late f-for a pret-ttee thing like you t-to be waalkin' out here alooone." He stopped his drunken, slurred speech to let out a long burp that smelled of straight vodka. "Let Shizuka and me, take you h-home and treat you reeeaaal right-t." He drug out the last two words and looked at Sakura in a sort of way to make her skin crawl. His black hair was cropped almost too short and he had dark, harsh eyes that were glassy with intoxication. His other had reached out to pull Sakura's hips around so he could look her better in the face, each finger bit into her skin and slid up and down in a way that no man should touch a woman that wasn't his. He laughed low and deep and looked intently at her, taking in the slight curvature of her hips that showed through the thin fabric of her sweatpants.

His friend, presumably Shizuka, got out of the car with him, his tattoos on his bare arms only slightly visible in the low light of the street lamp. They were evident enough however for Sakura to realize he was a part of one of the local gangs that ravaged Tomoeda's streets and beyond. He too had cropped hair, but his eyes were lighter and were focused intently on Sakura's shivering body. "She has a nice ass, Yamada," he crooned, striding forward to meet his friend on the sidewalk.

Yamada's fingers tightened around Sakura's arm and she let out a little whimper, unable to find her voice in her terror. It was as if each time he tightened his fingers around her arm, he was restricting her voice-box even more. "Yeahhh, she's a cute one, I w-want her first."

"Fuck that, you know I always get first dibs." Shizuka growled in return, sidling up beside his comrade to pull his hands off the girl. "And what I say goes, you drunk shit-head." He wrenched Yamada's fingers off Sakura and soon replaced them with his, pulling her close to his body. She could smell the liquor on his breath with each ragged exhale and his desire for her was evident as he pushed his hips against her.

Yamada made a move to protest, even parting his lips to retort, but soon the night's overindulgence of liquor was too much for him and he ran back to the road, heaving up the contents of his stomach. The retching noises and the smell of sour alcohol filled the air, making Sakura even sicker to her stomach than she already was. Shizuka laughed again, "Serves you right, maybe one of these days you'll learn to slow down on your drinking."

Sakura twisted in his arms trying to find some sort of way to break free from his vice grip while his attention was focused on the other man. He noticed on her second turn and he gripped her closer in response, dropping his fingers to rest just above her pelvic bone. He pressed inward, pulling her body backwards into his chest. His breathe was hot and uncomfortable against her cheek as he dragged his lips against the soft skin behind her ear. "You smell so delicious, I want you. Can you feel it?"

Sakura shuddered, trying desperately to regain her voice, but all speech escaped her as the fear of what was to happen consumed her. _I used to be the Clow Mistress and now this man has me reduced to a shivering mess. But I no longer have access to those cards, or Kero. I'm just like everyone else, just weaker and there's no one to help me out of this. _She fought back the tears that were threatening to take over in her defeat, wanting to hold on to what little dignity she had left, but a few tears dripped down her cheeks nonetheless. She'd never felt a man's body this close before and the feel of his male anatomy reacting to her warm body surprised her despite Tomoyo's various sex foreign feeling didn't nothing to qualm her nerves as his muscles flexed in response to her movements.

"What's your name?" He asked, pulling her behind him to an alleyway between two apartment buildings. There was no light there, save for the sliver that spilled in from the lamps on the street. Even if it were well lit, there were plenty of places to hide behind between the trash bins and the grime-covered, old mattress some apartment resident had thrown out weeks ago. He stopped at the corner and spun her around against the wall so he could look at her before descending into the darkness. His light brown eyes took in her tear-streaked face, her green eyes that betrayed her inner fears, and her hair that fanned out in all directions. She was beautiful and wholesome, so unlike the whores he was used to having. He wanted her so badly it hurt.

"Tanaka, Aiko," Sakura replied, not wanting to give him her real name. She would be damned if 'Sakura' was what he yelled in ecstasy. She looked him square in the eyes as she said this, having read in some article somewhere that it was easier to get away with a lie if you looked at the person straight on. But having to stare into his insensitive eyes scared her, especially the way they seemed to undress her without even trying.

Shizuka brought his thumb against her lips and swiped a few times, relishing the soft feel of them against the rough skin of his thumb pad. He smiled imagining those soft lips in other places on his body, kissing down his chest, his hip bones, and below. He groaned low in his throat just at the thought and pushed his body forward against hers, pushing her up against the wall. As the bricks crushed into her back, despite the clothes that separated her skin from the rough surface, she let out low whimper of pain and tried to look away, but his hand held her face in place. She was forced to look at the weather-worm face of her attacker; his harsh face was clean shaven except for a patch of hair just below his bottom lip and he had pock marks covering his cheeks, evidence of a fight during his teenage years with acne.

Both hands moved to the zipper on her jacket and he began to unzip it, exposing her collarbone to the cool night air, then her shirt, and finally the lower part of her stomach. Sakura cursed herself for not wearing a longer shirt as Shizuka's eyes moved freely over the carefully toned muscles of her abs. He licked his lips in a savage sort of way and leaned in with renewed vigor as his fingers dropped inside the waist band of her sweat pants.

"P-please stop," Sakura cried through clenched lips, finally regaining some sort of her voice. She was tired, hungry, and desperate for freedom, but the situation was looking bleaker by the second especially as Shizuka brought his lips crashing down on Sakura's to silence her. Her head slammed against the corner of the brick wall as his lips moved against hers hungrily, almost animal like in his need.

"Get your hands off of her! I've already called the police!" A familiar voice rang out into the night, scaring Shizuka so bad that not only did he retract his fingers and lips, but he took off back to the car and hopped in, forgetting about Yamada bent in half, vomiting his guts up. His tires screeched down the street, but Yamada didn't stop his heaves but once to stare after his egocentric comrade.

"It's gonna be okay, Sakura. The police are on their way. Turns out he wasn't that tough after all. Did you see how he ran?" The man who'd scared her potential rapist off stepped lightly toward Sakura's trembling body, both hands raised to signify he intended to cause her no harm. Her eyes could barely focus as her head spun in circles, the adrenaline kicking in from the trauma. She saw right through him almost as if he wasn't there, but she heard a voice. A lovely voice whether by her own imagination or by him really being there.

"Syaoran?" Sakura's heart burst out of her chest with happiness. She was safe, Syaoran didn't hate her; he was here to save her. The thump, thump of her pulse filled her ears and the pain from her head injury blurred her vision. She still couldn't see, but she knew it was him. It just had to be. This had to be her happy ending after such a horrendous night.

Good news was she was saved. Bad news is her savior was Daichi-san.

_All this for a stupid Butterfinger…_

* * *

Hey guys, finally posted another chapter. Let me know what you think by reviewing! This one definitely had much more adult content in it, but that's why I changed it to 'M'. I apologize if anything offended you or made you stop reading. I'm going to try to update quicker from now on. Thanks for sticking with me!!! –D.W.R.


	4. Lies

DaZed

By Diamond Wolf Returns

Chapter 4: Lies

The intense lights of the police station burned into Sakura's eyes as she sat cross-legged on one of the uncomfortable plastic chairs they reserve for the victims. Victim. That word sat in her mind; she had been so close to being one. Another statistic in the police charts of a young woman being taken advantage of by a cruel man. She shuddered and wiped the tears that glittered across her cheeks in the bright light with the back of her hand.

"Now tell me one more time Kinomoto-san, what did he look like?" A kindly police officer's voice broke into Sakura's thoughts causing her to jerk upright and address the situation she was currently in. The policeman had large, round cheeks that jiggled a bit when he talked. He reminded her of a bullfrog, about to stick his nasty tongue out and swallow the flies that revolved around the low hanging lamp above them. She shook her head and pushed the thought out of her mind; no sense thinking bad thoughts about the man who was trying to help her.

She straightened herself in the seat and looked at him squarely, sniffling a little bit as more tears threatened to flow. "I'm sorry, I just don't remember much," Sakura murmured, her arms instantly went up around her, holding her together in fear that she'd soon fall apart. "It all just blurs together to be honest…" She trailed off, choking off another set of tears. She felt stupid, she'd been the unstoppable Clow Mistress and now she was getting choked up over this? But she soon reminded herself that even the Clow Mistress herself had her breaking point, especially after a night so emotionally trying.

"It's natural for that to happen after a traumatic event, just relax and we'll get that scum off the street as fast as possible, but please try to remember. It'll make our job much easier," the police officer tried to act kind, but the stresses of the night were getting to him as evidenced by his gruff undertone underlying his respectful words. He cleared his throat and started to shuffle some papers on the desk before him. "Maybe it'll help if I bring in that young man who called the cops for you. He says that he's your boyfriend. You're a very lucky girl that he was there."

Sakura blinked a few times, incredulous. "Who, Daichi-san? He's not my…"

The man grabbed a paper, surveyed it with his round, amphibious eyes and nodded, "Yes, that's his name. Give me one minute to get him. I'm sure you'll be glad to see him." He started to exit –Sakura half expected him to hop his way out- when Sakura found her voice.

"Er-er wait, I'm starting to remember now, no need to get him!"

"God Sakura, I'm a fuckin lame excuse for a brother." Were the first words out of Touya's mouth when he arrived at the station. Tears filled his dark eyes, an action so unlike Touya that Sakura didn't have the heart to be angry with him. Instead she wordlessly grabbed his hand and led him out of the brick building and back to the street. His hand was clammy with distress and she had to hold tight to the warm dampness so her fingers wouldn't slip. "I should have, those bastards… Sakura, I'm so… I'm just…so, so sorry."

"Just be quiet Touya, It'll be okay. I'm fine. No harm done." She patted him lightly on the arm before sidling over to her brother's silver Toyota, her heart dropping down and breaking. She felt unloved and alone even with Touya sitting in the cramped car next to her. She toed a to-go box with her foot that smelled faintly of fried tofu and tried not to cry.

The silence that filled the air of the car was thick with emotion and neither sibling could bring themselves to break it. Soft, indistinguishable music played from the speakers, but even it did nothing to quell the mood.

Touya's mouth opened a few times and his eyes blinked furiously as he looked at his sister almost willing the words to come out past his lips. Either the guilt or Sakura's prior words stopped him. Instead he sighed and drove the last few minutes home without looking at her, his fingers tapping nervously against the steering wheel.

As he parked the silver Toyota in the driveway he once more attempted to speak, but was cut off by the slam of Sakura's car door. There was nothing he, or anyone else for that matter, could say to make her feel better so she felt it'd be better if he didn't say anything at all. Their father's decrepit old junker sat in front of where he parked, still hot and extending steam into the cool night air. No doubt he'd gotten Touya's message and rushed home.

Touya walked slowly down the path to the front porch straining his ears to hear Sakura and their father's soft voices floating out into the night air. His stomach was at his knees as images of what could have happened to his little sister cycled through his mind. _I wasn't there and I should have been. I knew she was having a bad night and I should have comforted her more. I'll be surprised if she ever trusts me again. _He sighed and walked inside, shutting the door behind him and flipping the locks to block the Kinomoto residence from the outside world.

Sakura lay across her father's lap, her tear-stained face buried in the crook between a pillow and the back of the couch as their father surveyed the bruises and cuts that were blossoming in harsh reds, blues, and deep purples on her back. Touya looked away, each mark reminded him of his selfishness—he should've taken his sister to the convenience store instead of kicking her out of the house. Suddenly a wave of nausea overcame him and he hurried into the kitchen for a glass of water, his lips parched and dry.

"This is all from being pushed into that wall?" Fujitaka's even, contemplative voice followed Touya into the kitchen wrapping him in a sort of calm as his lips touched the iciness of the water. He took a few more swigs from the glass and listened to the murmurs between his family members—his father's soft words and the now gentle whimpers of his sister—until the nausea went away and logical thoughts began forming once again in his head. His sister was okay after all. There really was nothing to worry about and in the morning eggs, toast, and pancakes would be waiting on the table, he and Sakura would be fighting over who got the last piece of sausage, and his father would be reading the morning paper, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand.

_Hazy smoke filled the air making the already dark corridor that much harder to traverse. She couldn't see more than a foot in front of her, the clink clink of her companion's boots ahead of her the only indication of what direction she should go in. She followed obediently, her hands pressed to her sides, and her eyes squinting dead ahead as if closing them tighter would help her see through the black abyss. _

'_Not much further, my dearest,' the voice murmured from somewhere beyond her. It was deep, manly, and strangely seductive in its simplicity. It rattled her to the core and took what little breath she could take –being that the smoke made it hard to breathe—to expel from her lungs. Images of his face flashed through her mind causing her to blush to her ears. She was suddenly thankful for the darkness; she didn't want him to think her a fool for letting him get to her so badly. She wanted him, more than anything._

_When she emerged into the light she saw him dressed in barely anything save for a pair of silk pajama pants, resting lazily on a sofa as if he had been there all night. His naked chest glowed bronze in the low light of the fireplace lining each well-toned muscles of his abdomen in gold. He beckoned her to him, his hold hand seeming to move in slow motion, or maybe it was simply a trick of the light obscured by the smoke. _

_Sakura… Sakura…_

_She heard him calling her name even though his naturally pink lips never moved. His words resonated in her mind and filled her with both fear and a fierce sense of longing. She stepped forward, boldly, her eyes set on nothing but him. _

'_Sakura, my love' He murmured from behind her, his movement not noticed by her slow, human eyes. She gasped, his hands finding her hip bones and pushing slightly into the warm flesh. He pulled her close, his hands cold on her body, his sweet breathe like the finest perfume to her nose as he kissed up and down her neck and onto her shoulder. _

'_Syaoran' she spoke his name, relishing in the fact that it was hers to say. She spun around, taking in his handsome face, her lips rising to meet his lips, but suddenly he wasn't her handsome prince anymore. He appeared to be the monster he truly was; his eyebrows knitted together in deep concentration, his forehead wrinkled, and his lips parted with deep thirst exposing his protruding fangs dripping with saliva. He wanted her so very much too…_

_His mouth opened wider, his teeth so white they glinted in the light, and a deep, beastly moan released from deep within him as he bent down, taking her soft neck into his mouth. His fangs extended and pierced into her flesh, burning, searing pain. Then there was darkness—_

Sakura awoke with a start, her heart beating fast from the dream. She was in her bed, her book, _Interview with a Vampire_ still lay propped open on her lap from the night before and her side lamp burned brightly, not having been shut off. She had pushed the book to the floor and was reminding herself to never read it before bed again when she noticed the slim figure in the corner of her room. Her heart, still beating rapidly from the strange dream, went into overdrive until she realized it was Tomoyo.

"Morning Sakura, I'm sorry to intrude like this, but your dad _did_ let me in. It was the only way I could get to talk to you. " Tomoyo murmured, striding across the room then taking a seat next to Sakura on the bed. She sighed, twisted a long strand of hair between two fingers and bit her bottom lip. Her beautiful face was laced with worry. "I suppose you want to know what last night's… urm, incidents… were all about."

"I did nothing to you! Why'd you snap at me like that last night?" Sakura cried, a bit unnerved by the ferocity in her voice. She shoved the covers off her body and stood up, but softened her movements when she saw how her reaction had stung Tomoyo. Sure, her best friend had been pretty horrible to her last night, but that didn't mean that she had to be as harsh back.

"I know, but it was all part of the plan. It all sounds so stupid now, but…" The black-haired girl sighed again, but held Sakura's eyes with hers. "If you'd please just sit down I will explain. Please?"

Sakura thought about sending Tomoyo out of the room until curiosity got the best of her. Sighing, she pulled her hair back with clips off her desk and resigned to the bed, her green eyes focused on the dark-haired girl. "Okay, tell me."

Tomoyo gave a sort of half smile that made her look even more uncomfortable and took Sakura's hands in hers. "Promise me that you'll let me finish til the end?"

"Just get on with it."

"First of all, I'm sorry, Sakura. I really never meant this to happen."

The brunette made a hurried motion with her hand as if to say 'well get on with it', but nodded all the same. This encouraged Tomoyo to continue. "I know that you've like Syaoran since, well, forever. He's always been that unreachable guy for you and you've never had the courage to speak to him. I thought that if I could just set things up he'd realize how great of a person you were and fall madly for you. I was sitting in the back of Biology when I overheard him talking to some of his friends about how he was having some difficulties lately. So-"

Sakura thinned her lips and made a slow intake of breath. She was afraid of what her best friend was going to tell her. She wanted desperately for the other girl to just blurt what really happened out.

"-So I went up to him after class and asked if I could set up a business arrangement of sorts with him. You see I knew that you've been really stressed about school and your family's finances and such lately so I wanted to do something to cheer you up especially since my birthday party was coming up and I wanted you to be as happy as me that day. Anyway, I had gathered from Syaoran's conversation with his friends that he'd been cut off from the family finances for some nasty rumors that he'd gotten some girl pregnant. He later told me that his mother flipped and told him that if he was going to pay for cheap whores then he'd have to pay out of his own pocket. I know he's been working with your brother at that car shop, but he was desperate to have more money. So, I offered him some to do me a little favor."

"A favor?" Sakura's mouth suddenly went dry and she had to choke back the bile that was suddenly rising in her throat. She knew what Tomoyo was about to tell her was going to change how she viewed their friendship.

Tomoyo nodded, gripping Sakura's hands tighter in her own. Her dark eyes began to well up with tears as she struggled with how she was going to phrase the next part. "I asked him if he would come to my party and show you the night of your life for, for two-hundred d-dollars. It all seemed so simple in my head. I figured I would get into a fake fight with you and that would get you alone to where he could sweep you off your feet and dazzle you, b-but something went wrong. He shoved the money back at me and went out the door without telling me what happened. I am so sorry, Sakura. I never should have…"

Her tears were now falling rapidly down her face, but Sakura had no sympathy for the other girl. "You think you could buy me off like that? How could y-"

"—It's not like that! You were never supposed to know about the money!"

"And that's supposed to make me feel better? I told you already, I do not need your charity, Tomoyo. I don't need you to buy guys for me. Now all Syaoran can see me as is pathetic." Sakura ground her teeth in anger and disbelief. _How could this happen? All of what happened with Syaoran was an act. He doesn't give two shits about me. I acted like a stupid puppy head over heels for him last night. He probably was so sickened by me that he left. _

"Sorry! I just wanted you to have a romantic night with Syaoran. It was never going to happen otherwise because you don't have the courage to go after him. You can fight battles with magic, but when it comes to Syaoran you're scared."

"Get out." Sakura hissed through gritted teeth. Her eyes were deep green slits as she stared with anger at the woman she used to call her best friend. "Get out of my room!"

"Sakura, again I'm sorry for doing this, but you have to agree with me that you're scared to make a move!" Tomoyo stated back, standing up with her hands placed defiantly on her hips. "Don't push me away because I'm pointing out a simple truth."

"I'm sending you away because you have ruined any chance I'll ever have with Syaoran. He'll probably never look at me again. I'm sending you away because you were too focused on getting me to forgive you last night and this morning to realize all the crap that I went through last night." She turned around and ripped her shirt upward so that the injuries from the previous night showed in the bright morning sun that filtered happily through the window. It was weird that the world was going on as normal outside went all around her Sakura felt her life was crashing at her feet. The scratches and scrapes had fresh scabs coating them and the bruises had turned a deeper brownish-purple color.

Tomoyo gasped, her purplish eyes widening in shock and her lips parting as the air whoosed through them. "What happened?" She made a move to step forward but something in Sakura's expression kept her from finishing the stride out.

"Go ask someone else to explain. I don't have anything else to say to you." With that Sakura had finished her end of the conversation, but Tomoyo, ever the one to not let anything go, plopped herself right back on the bed.

"Alright, missy, I may have made a huge mistake in bribing Syaoran, but we've been through so much that this should be nothing. I can take you being furious with me. I can't take you not talking to me, though. Tell me what happened then yell and scream at me a bit more for this whole shit show I put you through then we'll go get ice cream or something, okay?"

Already Sakura's forgiving nature was working against her and as the moments ticked by she felt her anger ebbing slowly away. She loosened her fists and sat down next to her somewhat of a friend. She wanted to explain to Tomoyo what happened, but found the words caught in her throat. _How could she explain the things that man tried to do to her? The pain she felt, the fear? _

"I ripped the dress leaving through those bushes you always use to sneak out and it scratched my back too. And I was so distressed about everything I wasn't paying attention went I came up the stairs and fell back down them. That's where all those bruises came from." The lie sounded weak to her own ears, but she couldn't bear to tell the truth. Besides, Tomoyo seemed to take it as she wrapped her arms around her friend.

"Gosh, I'm sorry, Sakura. You must think I'm such a bitch for all of this and here I was bothering you over and over last night when you were probably in your bed trying to recover from falling down the stairs! I was just so scared something bad had happened between you and Syaoran that I was desperate to find you. I even blurted out the whole story to Rika and Naoko last night." She gripped Sakura tighter in her arms and rested her head on Sakura's shoulder. Then her head snapped up and she looked at Sakura again with those bright eyes. "Nothing bad _did_ happen between you two right?"

Sakura shook her head, unable to explain that situation either. Instead she got up and went into the bathroom next to her room without a word. In the mirror she found her eyelids were swollen with all the crying she'd done the previous night and her lips quivered with all her pent-up emotion. She splashed some water on her face and succumbed once again to the tears.

"Morning Sakura, Tomoyo, Dad already left this morning. He asked me to set out the breakfast he made for you and have you call back the station. They called and left a message this morning while you were still asleep. Evidently they need to ask some more questions. " Touya said, already halfway out the door on his way to work. He gave a awkward half wave and then slammed the door behind him. Unable to entirely face his sister this morning he took to work to distract him.

"The station?" Tomoyo asked, her eyebrows rising in question. She leaned forward to grab a piece of toast of the table with a finely manicured hand then brought it to her mouth to lightly nibble the edges. Tomoyo had always been like that, stately in her actions most likely due to her rich upbringings.

"Don't worry about it, some neighborhood thefts have been going on around here and the local police station wants to question everyone who might have seen anything." Sakura was surprised at how well the lies were just rolling off her tongue this morning. This wasn't her, usually she was truthful, forgiving, and happy-go-lucky, but the sense of depression would just not rise up. She picked at the scrambled eggs her father had made, her appetite not allowing her to eat more than a forkful.

After a while she succumbed to the fact that she wasn't going to eat anymore and began collecting the plates off the table her mind barely focused on the task as Tomoyo chattered away at her.

"And I think we should do some shopping today to get ready for our school trip next Wednesday. I haven't even started! I need a new sleeping bag and a new bathing suit and new hiking boots…"

_Goddammit _Sakura thought angrily throwing the dishes in the sink. Flecks of food shot back up towards her as the dishes cascaded into the bottom of the metal sink. _Another thing ruined, I was looking forward to this trip because I was in the same activity group as Syaoran and now it's just going to be awkward. This is going to be the longest week ever…_


End file.
